A Smell So Sweet
by Blinded In Chains
Summary: The Noah have made their presence known and The Order knows it needs every Exorcist at their disposal, even those MIA. Full summary inside. Kanda/OC
1. Chapter 1

**A/N- Well this is one of my first published stories and I have never written a D. Gray-Man fic before, but I think I can actually go places with it. It will be a Kanda/OC fic.**

**Summary- The Noah have made their presence known and The Order knows it needs every Exorcist at their disposal, even those MIA. When Allen and Kanda find an Exorcist on a mission and bring her to The Order she ran away from, problems can only ensue. But could love as well? And with a certain unlikely, unlovable Samurai? Can two cold hearts thaw and melt as one?  
**

**Disclaimer- I do not own -Man, but I claim rights to my own character.**

**A Smell So Sweet**

**Chapter One  
**

My nose burned with the scent that filled it. It was a difficult smell to describe, similar to the burn of alcohol. It's the feeling of your sensory receptors being singed, your throat burning, and your eyes watering as the smell becomes overwhelming and that slight gag reflex that is triggered when you inhale the harsh scent. There was a hint of decay hidden in the burn and it was enough for you to lose your lunch. It was the smell of an Akuma and I loved it. This, now, familiar scent made my heart race and pound in my ears, the adrenaline pump throughout my body leaving me with a sense of euphoria, it made my mouth water and my teeth ache in anticipation. Nothing could compete with that scent and it sent me seeking out the wonderful aroma. That's why I was here, in France, trying to catch that scent that gave me shivers of excitement.

The stars shone brightly in the sky and the crescent moon gave just enough light to see by in the dark. The band of silver around my neck glinted as the light of the moon and stars caught it just right as I ran, following that wonderful smell. However another scent mixed with the smell of the Akuma. The smell of humans wafted just under the Akuma's stink.

Explosions just ahead had me leaping to the roofs of the many small French shops to get a better look. A dozen or so level one and a couple level two Akuma floated around the tops of the trees in the park and at the roots stood two boys, Exorcists. I stop at the last shop and watched with mild curiosity. One boy had strange short white hair. His Innocence manifested as a large armored claw that he was using as no more than a shield at that moment from the on slot of Akuma bullets being shot at them. He was unable to do much more than defend. The other however, had long dark hair and moved with grace, deflecting the bullets with his katana, which I assume, was his own Innocence. But neither was gaining much of an upper hand against the Akuma.

I smiled, "Collar of Imprisonment, free me of my confines."

I leapt from my perch and the silver collar around my neck glowed as the Innocence activated. My body shifted smoothly and when I landed on the ground below, I landed on four huge, clawed paws. My Innocence had transformed me into a large wolf, with a coat red. I propelled my immense form up and at the nearest, delicious smelling Akuma. I sunk my teeth into the mask and tore it off, then promptly jumped away from it just before it exploded. The other Akuma turned their attention to me and I let out a satisfied growled as they moved toward me.

The Exorcists watched as a very large dog leapt at an Akuma. It was much taller than a grown man and must have had a body longer than eight feet. It had large, sharp teeth and claws and two tails almost as long as it's body. It tore off the mask of the Akuma it attacked and jumped to the ground as it exploded.

Allen and Kanda watched the animal in confusion.

"What is that?" Allen asked amazed at the creature.

Kanda snorted, "What does it matter? We still have the Innocence to find before the Akuma, I won't be held up by some mutt." He then sliced through two of the Akuma, the explosion whipping his long hair in different directions. He then jumped away at another one of the Akuma.

_It looks like it's trying to help us._ Allen thought as he watched the large wolf distract the Akuma that were just moments ago overwhelming him and Kanda. If it hadn't showed up, he wasn't sure how much longer they could have just deflected the attacks. But now they were all focused on the wolf and he couldn't stand here and not help. He struck an Akuma close to him, destroying it.

"Here puppy, puppy. Nice puppy. Do you want to play?" One of the Level Twos asked.

I growled in response, baring my white teeth, not bothering to validate the creature with a verbal response.

"Oh! I'm so scared!" The Akuma danced around, laughing and pretending to shake. A sinister grin broke out on its face. "Let's see how scary you are dead!" It yelled and dashed towards me.

I jumped out of the way and bit down on the Akuma's leg, throwing it into the ground, leaving a crater. It yelled and screamed and threw golf balls at me. I looked at them curiously and sniffed them _'What the hell? That's its attack, golf balls?' _I thought then looked up at the creature as it giggled in joy, Then I heard a yell from beside me a few yards off,

"They're explosives! Get away from them!" The white haired boy warned and I leapt away as the Akuma laughed manically and the golf balls all exploded. I would have lost my nose.

I growled in annoyance and ran at the Akuma, who threw more golf balls. I was prepared this time and used my tail to effectively throw them back in his direction. The Akuma shrieked as they exploded in his face, leaving him dazed. I ran forward to make the kill, but was met by the other Exorcist who sliced through the Akuma and my side.

The wolf howled in pain as the blood sprayed from the long cut along its rib cage.

"Kanda!" Allen yelled, horrified at what he'd just done. The animal wasn't their enemy, it was their ally. What Allen had come to identify as a fellow Exorcist. "Why did you do that?" He demanded.

Kanda simply looked at the agonized animal, blood pouring from the wound he'd just inflicted and said simply, "It got in the way."

I growled in anger at his response, but felt a weird sense of respect for his ruthlessness. I rose to my feet and stumbled slightly. As I gained my footing though, the Akuma rained bullets down on me.

Allen watched as the large animal got to its feet shakily, but before it could do much more the Akuma zeroed in on the, now, injured wolf and berated it with bullets. His eyes were filled with shock and concern. He was not able to stand and stare though, as when the Akuma assumed that the wolf had been eliminated, they turned to him and began firing. In a rage that the wolf's death could have been prevented if Kanda wasn't such a bastard, he fired back killing two, then changed his arm into a sword and cut through three more. Kanda had eliminated the rest of the Level Ones and the Level Two remained.

It laughed at Allen's pain and anger at the death of the wolf, its fangs dripping with venom, before launching at Allen mouth open as wide as a snake. Allen readied his gun up to shot it in the mouth, but before he could let off a shot, the Akuma was tackled in mid air and rolled across the ground.

Allen stood, frozen in surprise. He looked to the side and saw the great wolf ripping the head of the Akuma off. It stumbled back and fell, seemingly unconscious. With the last of the Akuma dead, Allen deactivated his arm and approached the wolf. Suddenly the wolf's body glowed bright green and Allen covered his eyes with his arm. When the glowing stopped and he put his arm down, a human girl lay unconscious where the wolf had been.

Allen ran to her side and examined her wounds. Kanda had injured her badly. Her clothes were soaked in her own blood and her breathing shallow.

Allen looked up at Kanda from his kneeling position, "She's hurt badly you jerk. She might not make it."

"Che. It's not my problem she got in the way. If she dies, she can only blame herself." He responded indifferently, though his gaze lingered on her longer than it should have for someone that did not care.

Allen just glared at the Samurai Exorcist, before scooping up the girl. She had risked her own life for them and saved him from what was sure to be a fatal bite from that Level Two, he wasn't so heartless as to leave her there to die. He'd get her to an infirmary.

"What are you doing?" Kanda questioned, raising an eyebrow at Allen.

"I'm taking her to a doctor. It's the least I can do." Allen replied looking down at the unconscious form in his arms.

"Hmph. You're such a bleeding heart Moyashi." Kanda replied arrogantly, eyes closed to the sight before him and his face turned away. As Allen took the girl to an infirmary not that far away, Kanda returned to the inn they were staying at to give Komui a call and give him an update of the nights events.

I took in the smells around me as consciousness returned. It smelled clean, too clean. There was the smell of humans everywhere. I was in a hospital. It was the only place in the world that smelled so clean.

I opened my green eyes and sat up to look around the room I was in. I quickly grabbed at my side as I went to move and sealed my eyes in pain. I looked down and the bandages there were already soaking through with blood from my newly reopened wound. I hissed and scolded myself. I ignored it though and looked around the room. It was plain, white everywhere, wall, curtains, sheets, chairs, everything. I was definitely in a hospital. _When had I gotten here? How long had I been here? Did the Exorcist's bring me here? _Many questions ran through my mind and I would find someone to give me the answers.

As if somehow summoned a young female nurse entered the room (A white uniform of course). She looked at me in surprise and then, noticing my bandages steadily turning red, she looked at me as though a child that had played in the dirt in their perfect Sunday Church clothes.

"What are you doing moving around?" She asked moving towards me with an air of authority. "You're going to make your wounds worse."

"How did I get here?" I questioned, ignoring her and moving my feet to hang off the bed. The IV pulled annoyingly at my hand and I proceeded to remove it.

"Don't touch that!" She all, but shrieked and held my hands to prevent me from continuing, "And get back into bed, you really shouldn't be moving around."

I glared and repeated my question more sternly, "How long have I been here?"

She huffed, "Only a few hours. The boy that brought you here said he would be back in a few minutes. Now _please_ lay back down and rest."

I bit back a growl and laid down again. The nurse went about fussing over my bandages, but I told her they were fine and to leave me alone. She finally left the room, angry with my attitude, but I couldn't care less I was just glad to have her gone. Several minutes later someone else entered the room and I turned to look at them.

"Oh! You're awake." The boy with white hair exclaimed as he walked in, a friendly smile on his face, "I thought for sure you'd be out longer. Kanda caused a lot of damage." He walked to the side of the bed, "How are you feeling?"

I stared at him for a moment, "Kanda?" I questioned.

"Uh.. Yeah. The other boy I was with. He injured you when he destroyed that Akuma." He replied scratching the back of his head and laughing nervously. "I'm Allen, by the way, Allen Walker."

So Kanda was the name of that bastard. "I'm feeling fine and you have my thanks for saving my life, but I will be leaving now." I said and reached over and removed my IV and threw the sheets off.

I winced as I sat up and stood on the far side of the bed where Allen was not standing. He stood in a stupor for a moment before realizing what I was doing and proceeded to freak out.

"What? No! You're not in the condition to be moving around like that. You'll just make yourself worse." He scrambled to the other side of the bed and put his hands on my shoulders gently trying to persuade me back into bed. "Plus, I have orders to bring you to the Black Order as soon as possible."

I stopped my harsh reply and the punch to the gut I was about to administer to Allen when I heard the last sentence, "What?"

He looked at me startled a bit, apparently expecting me to lash out, but taken aback with the more shocked reply, "Uh, yeah. You're an Exorcist, right? I was told to bring you back to Head Quarters with us. But you shouldn't move until your wounds have healed, they aren't expecting us for a while."

I had been looking down at the floor, rage steadily building as I listened to him. When he finished I slowly brought my eyes up to meet his and he gasped and wisely took several steps back,

"I will not go anywhere with you, especially not back to the Black Order. If you try to make me I will not hesitate in tearing you apart." I said rather calmly.

_Geez, _thought Allen, _She sounds like Kanda. And what does she mean "back to the Black Order"?_

"Uh-" Allen didn't really seem to know what to say and I took advantage of his speechlessness to start out the door of the hospital room. "Wait!" He called out following me.

I ignored him and continued towards the door, but as I reached it my path was blocked when the boy, now known as Kanda, appeared in the doorway. I glared at him and he glared back down at me, being slightly taller.

"Where are you going?" He asked sharply, arms crossed over his chest.

"Out of this hospital and away from the two of you." I responded shortly and tried to make my way around him, but he stepped back into my path.

"No. You're staying here until your wounds heal and then we're taking you to the Order as we've been ordered to." He said matter-a-factly.

"As I told you're friend over there, I will not go anywhere with either of you and if you try to make me, I will rip you limb from limb." I threatened, though I wasn't sure how well said threat was going to hold.

Kanda smirked, "Go for it mutt, because I will not go against orders and I will not fail in my mission."

I growled and my collar began to glow, but before it could activate Kanda disappeared from the doorway. I looked around in slight confusion and then felt him behind me. I couldn't turn around fast enough and I felt the _crack_ of the hilt of his sword colliding with the back of my head and was promptly thrown into unconsciousness, again.

Allen watched the confrontation between the girl and Kanda and he knew it would not end well for one of them and it probably wasn't going to be Kanda. He winced when he heard the solid crack as he rendered her unconscious with the hilt of his katana and winced again when he heard her fall to the ground.

"Bakanda, do you have to be so brash?" Allen asked, "I'm sure we could have talked to her and convinced her to go with us. You didn't have to hit her." He continued as he walked to the girl and picked her up. He started towards the bed to set her down,

"Don't bother Moyashi. We're leaving now." He said and walked out the door.

"What? But what about her injuries, they haven't healed?" He inquired, confused.

"If we put her back, we'll have to watch her so she doesn't escape. It's easier to get back to the Order now, while she's unconscious and unable to refuse." He explained without slowing his stride out of the hospital.

"It's a long trip back Kanda, she'll wake up on our way there." Allen countered.

"Then I'll hit her again." He replied.

Allen blanched, "You're going to give her brain damage."

"Not my problem" Kanda said without looking back at Allen as he entered the busy train station.

People started curiously at them as they waited for the train. Kanda stood impassively ahead, but Allen could not help noticing the stares and whispers over the other passengers.

"People are staring. They must think we are kidnapping her or something. Although, technically we are, as she isn't coming of her own will." He trailed off.

Kanda rolled his eyes, but ignored the Moyashi. _He talks too much, the bleeding heart idiot._ Kanda thought. He just wished that the train would get here and that they get back to Headquarters soon so that he didn't have to listen to him any longer.

On cue, the train rolled into the station and opened its doors for boarding passengers. Kanda entered the train and gracefully made his way to an empty compartment and sat down. Allen on the other hand, carrying an unconscious girl that was taller than him, did not manage so gracefully.

As Allen boarded the locomotive, he hit her head on the door, smacked a fellow passenger with her feet , stumbled over a piece of luggage that he could not see, and knocked over a another passenger while trying to regain his balance. When he finally made it into the compartment and set her down on the empty bench, he plopped down next to Kanda with a relieved sigh. Then his eyes grew dark,

"You could have helped you know!" He snapped at the samurai.

"Che."

_My head hurts, _was the first thought I had when I started to wake up. The second thought was, _I'm going to kill them. _I was at the Black Order. Like a hospital, The Order had its own unique feel and smell and there was no mistaking it, not once you've experienced it.

I sat up and noticed I was in the infirmary. There were many beds lined up along the walls, while normally most lay empty, there was an unusual amount of injured here. _Why so many? What happened?_ I'll admit I was a tad concerned. There were never this many Finders and Exorcists in the infirmary, unless something unexpected or devastating happened. Nurses scurried to and from different bed, tending to their patients and were too busy to notice I was awake.

I turned and stood up, ignoring the sharp pain that ran through my body from my ribcage like volts of electricity. I walked past bed after bed looking at the injured Finders occupying them. The nurses didn't really pay me any mind, their focus on the more needy of their attention.

I pushed open the door and took a step out, but that's as far as I got before I heard a shrieking command,

"Don't you leave this infirmary."

I looked over my shoulder to see the head nurse stampeding towards me. I growled and continued. I made it down the hallway and out of the vicinity before she could exit the infirmary. _She must have gotten held up, I know she can move faster than that._ I thought to myself. I could hear her screaming several hallways away though.

I was beginning to get annoyed by the pain in my side and activated my Innocence,

"Collar of Imprisonment, free me from my confines." The collar glowed and my body was transformed in to the same large wolf form. The wound on was set a light with the Innocence and minutes later it faded away and I was fully healed. I shook my massive head to and fro, before deactivating and returning to my human self.

With the wound taken care of I went on my way to the exit. The time that I spent using my Innocence seemed to have given the nurse time to notify someone of my escape and that someone was a certain supervisor.

I glared at Komui's approaching figure,

"Let me go Komui. Don't make me stay here." I almost begged.

He gave me a friendly, yet sad smile, "Victoria, I wouldn't if I didn't have to."

"But you don't. You don't have to. You can pretend you never saw me." I offered.

His smile fell and he moved closer, though I stepped back, "I really can't Victoria. The Noah Clan has reared their ugly heads and we need every Exorcist we have. I am sure you saw the devastation their appearance in this war has caused. It's your duty."

I growled and looked at him incredulously, "My duty? My duty! I took on the duty once and look what it got me. This so called "duty", brings nothing, but suffering for those that are unfortunate enough to befall it."

"I do not consider myself unfortunate."

I spun around and stared at Allen, _How long had he been there?_

"Then you're a fool." I answered.

"I admit, being an Exorcist beings pain and suffering. Sometimes it makes you want to give up, run away from it all, but it's the best thing that could have happened to me. In the beginning I could not see how my cursed left eye could be anything else, but now I feel it is a blessing." He brought a hand up to cover his scarred, cursed eye, "Here I can use it to protect those that matter to me, my friends. I am able to help the world with my curse and my gift. Those blessed with the power to contend the evil of the Millennium Earl should embrace them and use them, not shun them no matter the amount of suffering." Allen had been slowly walking towards me, seemingly in his own head instead of merely talking to me. He stopped and looked up at me, a smiling.

I stared, captivated and enraged. _Gifts, blessings? Who was he kidding? To be subjected to a loss of those you hold dear because of your "gifts" and "blessings" is not something to be embraced._ I opened my mouth to berate him for his naiveté, but Komui stopped the words before the spilled forth,

"Allen, tell her how your eye became cursed."

Allen looked over to him, surprised, but Komui merely nodded his head in encouragement.

"Mana, my adoptive father, cursed my eye the night I returned him from the dead as an Akuma." Allen said sullenly.

My eyes widen in shock. _Allen turned his own father into an Akuma? _

"Before I knew of Innocence, Exorcists, and Akuma, I had Mana. I was cast aside by everyone, until Mana. He took care of me and raised me. Then Mana died. I was devastated; I had just lost the only person in the world who loved me. The Earl preyed on that and one night, asked me if I want to bring Mana back. I didn't think it was possible, but if it were? I could have him back and accepted The Earl's offer and called Mana back." Tears looked like they would fall from his storm gray eyes, "I was so happy to hear his voice, but it sounded pained and disappointed. Then The Earl order Mana to kill me and wear me. Mana tried to fight it, but an Akuma cannot deny The Earl's orders. When he attacked me he cut my left eye and told me he cursed me for turning him into an Akuma. My Innocence awoke then and destroyed him. I was taken in by My Master, General Cross and became an Exorcist."

Allen looked down trodden, though a smile graced his face, it covered great sadness. I knew that sadness, but instead of finding the positive light in my darkness I nestled further into it.

I swallowed the words I had been about to say to Allen and turned to Komui, who stood there a satisfied smile on his face. _Asshole, he knew this would happen._

"I suppose I could stick around long enough to kick some Noah ass." I resigned, "But after, you promise me that I am not bound here. That is I choose to, which I surely will, I can leave." I said sternly, giving Komui and hard stare.

"I can't promise The Order will not look for you, but if you were to slip out while we slept, there's nothing I can do." He smiled slyly.

* * *

**I have already started the next chapter, so if you want it to continue let me know in a review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I'd like to apologize about the lack of POV indicators. I did have them when I wrote it, but they got lost when I uploaded and then when I edited, it didn't change. Sorry about that. I'll look into fixing it. I am going to be tweaking things. Mostly the character's ages and how characters, we didn't see in the anime, got to the Order. Thank you to the three that reviewed. I very much appreciate it. Enjoy the chapter and let me know what you think!**

**Disclaimer: ****I do not own D. Gray-Man, but I claim rights to my own character.**

******A Smell So Sweet**

******Chapter Two  
**

Allen and I followed Komui through the Black Order's Headquarters to his office. I followed quietly, lost in my own thoughts.

_What the hell am I doing? This place was never good for me. Being an Exorcist here would only resurface memories and emotions I would much rather forget, yet here I am. What was it about this kid? Why did I fold after hearing his sob story? It's not a new thing for Exorcists to have horrible pasts or devastating futures, far from it. Since there have been Exorcists, there has been devastation. But maybe it was how he carried his turmoil, on steady shoulders, twisting his memories to make them easier to live with day to day. Either way, he irked me.  
_

I glanced at the younger boy that was the center of my thoughts. He walked beside me with a happy smile, satisfied at having a new Order member to call a friend. This boy perplexed me and that annoyed me. What was so enigmatic about this seemingly simple boy? My innocent stare turned to a fierce glare and Allen must have noticed as he turned and gave me a strange look.

"Victoria? I-Is there something the matter?" He asked uncertainly.

"No." I said shortly and stopped looking at him, leaving Allen very confused.

Komui stopped in front of his office and abruptly turned on his heal, a small smile on his face, "I have a mission for you Victoria, which I think you'll enjoy."

I snorted and crossed my arms, cradling my breasts, "Of course you do."

Komui's smile grew, "I'll give you the details in my office." He turned and threw open the doors to his office and continued to walk in.

Allen and I followed behind him. His desk and office were as messy as I remembered, maybe even worse. Papers and folders stacked as high as possible without toppling over. You could barely tell that a desk was even in the room until Komui sat behind it. We stopped in front of the barely there desk and waited.

Komui shuffled through the papers and made sound of achievement, holding up a Finder's report.

"Here it is." He said showing us the papers.

"Komui sir, am I going too?" Allen asked.

"Nope, I have another mission for you." He said smiling and I didn't particularly like his smile or that he was so happy about something. I'd learned it never means anything good for me. Komui always had this annoying need to make things difficult for me for his own amusement. "Hmm, he should have been here by now." He mumbled.

At that moment the door opened and the "he" Komui was speaking of entered. I glared in their direction and then growled as I spun around to stare at the Supervisor.

"What is _he_ doing here?" I asked.

"I have a mission; I'm supposed to be here. Mutts, however, have no business here." Kanda replied arrogantly, crossing his arms.

"Oh Kanda, that's not a very nice thing to say, you two should try to get along better. You will, after all, be going on this mission together." He said and his smile grew wider.

I blanched and sputtered, Kanda's eyes widened, "What!" we chorused glaring back at Komui.

"I thought I was quiet clear, you both will be going on this mission, _together_." Komui repeated looking as though he _hadn't_ just done something completely evil.

"Are you trying to lose an Exorcist, Komui? If you make us go on this mission, I won't promise her safe return." Kanda replied calmly, all shock erased from his face. The slightly twitching of his brow was proof of his annoyance with the current situation though.

Komui's face turned suddenly serious and I raised my eyebrow in curiosity, "You two will go and you two will complete this mission as smoothly as possible. If I hear anymore about it, things are sure to be more uncomfortable for the both of you, understand?"

I knew that when Komui wore his "serious" face, that it is best to listen and just follow your orders and our orders now were to work together. _Goddamn it all. _

"Hmph." Was Kanda's short reply, he must have known about the "serious" face as well.

"Understood." I ground out, far from happy.

Komui's smile returned, "Great! You'll be going to Italy. The Finder's in the city of Palermo have reported that large amounts of Akuma have been showing up—"

"And you think there is an Innocence fragment there attracting them." I cut him off, getting to the point.

"Yes, we believe so. We can't think another reason why there would be so many. However, there have not been any strange occurrences to speak of, so there may not be any Innocence at all and The Earl is up to something else." Komui finished.

I sighed. This was going to be a long mission. Kanda huffed and turned on his heels, then stopped. Without looking over his shoulder he said,

"I'm leaving in an hour. If you are not at the boat by then, you go alone."

"I might just be five minutes late then." I replied.

He didn't bother replying and left the office. I rounded on Komui,

"I don't know what you are up to, but I'm not amused."

"I hadn't expected you to be. But now that, that is taken care of, there is someone dying to see you." He said.

The door opened again and a Lenalee Lee stepped through it. She looked around timidly before her gaze rested on me. Her eyes lit up and she smiled and hurried over to me before grabbing me in a crushing embrace.

"Lena. Lee. Can't. Breath!" I gasped out. She squeezed me once more before letting go and smiling at me. "Nice to see you too Lenalee." I said flatly.

Her smile then turned to a vicious glare and she punched me. Not having expected it, it landed firmly on my chin. I stumbled back a bit and put a hand to my face, taken aback by her sudden violence. Allen looked horrified and Komui stared on neutrally. _That's why he was so giddy; he knew his little sister would react this way. Asshole was getting too much pleasure from my suffering._

"Lenalee! Why did you do that?" Allen exclaimed.

Lenalee continued to glare at me, ignoring Allen completely, before tears began to appear in her hurt eyes, "How could you do that to us? How could you just leave like that? I understand it was hard, but we were your friends, we wanted to be there for you. You didn't even give us a chance!"

I looked up at her and took my hand from my face; though my chin still throbbed (she could throw a mean right hook). I study her for a moment, taking in the hurt and betrayal in her eyes, before my stare softened,

"I am sorry Lenalee. I was not in a good place then. My head was in turmoil and I didn't know how to deal with it, except run away. So I did. I still don't want to be here, but I am. Will you please forgive me?" I said to her.

"Under one condition." She said her face stern and determined (the "serious" face runs in the family), "You won't run away like that again. You'll at least say goodbye if you chose to leave."

I smiled. Family and friends were very important to Lenalee and almost one in the same. I knew if anyone would be hurt by my actions it would be poor, sweet, caring Lenalee, I felt like a jerk.

"Very well then, I'm forgiven?" I agreed and asked.

Her smile grew wide, "Yes! I am so happy to see you Vickie. I missed you so much."

And she began to chatter on about things that had happened the last few years and how she had grown as an Exorcist. I was happy to listen. When I first arrived at the Order Lenalee was still very much timid and shy, Komui only having just arrived a year or so before and there weren't many Exorcists her age, or anyone her age, running around Headquarters. When I got here I was a few years older than her, but we quickly became close friends. We trained and worked together until our Innocence and bodies were strong enough to go on missions and Komui regularly sent us together. We had been through a lot together and, while I don't regret leaving the Order, I did regret leaving Lenalee behind.

"Oh! I didn't come here just to talk did I?" Lenalee blushed at her ease of distraction.

"I don't know, did you?" I countered.

"Nope! I actually came here for a mission, didn't I Brother?" She said and looked at Komui who had tears pouring down his cheeks.

"It's so good to see you so happy again Lenalee! I know Allen's joining lifted a lot of that burden from you, but now you have that twinkle in your eye again!" He began balling and cradled his head in his arms on his desk, crying for several minutes. He then shot up, making the three of us take a step back in surprise,

"Well, Victoria you should head to your room and clean up a bit before meeting Kanda at the boats. I hope you remember where your room is, yes?" I nodded a little unsure by his drastic change in attitude, "Good."

Allen, Lenalee, and I just stared flabbergasted. _How can a grown man get away with acting like that? And manage to become one of the most powerful people in the Dark Order? It's simply stunning. _

"Good luck Lenalee, Allen. I'll see you when I get back." I said and quickly made my exit before getting caught up in anything else. I sighed in relief once I was out in the hall. I could remember perfectly where my old room was, however it brought back memories I, again, would rather forgotten.

~x~x~x~

Allen looked to Komui after Victoria left the office,

"Uh, Komui sir, is that really a good idea? Kanda and Victoria get along _worse_ than him and I and that's saying something." He said a concerned look on his face.

Komui just sighed and adjusted his glasses,

"I think they'll get along fine." He said, Allen was not so convinced.

~x~x~x~

I approached the door to my room and paused before opening it. I really did not like being here, but I took a deep breath and opened the door to walk through. My room had not changed at all. Everything was like I left it, though it was obvious that it had been cleaned periodically, but nothing was moved. My dresser was still covered in photos and keepsakes I had collected over the years I had spent here. I walked to the dresser to look at the photos. There was one in particular that I wanted to look at.

I picked up the plain photo frame and gazed at the picture inside. It was taken a few years after I had joined the Dark Order. There were four people in the picture taken in the cafeteria here. I was sitting at the table, a grin on my face. There was a boy to my left with his arm wrapped around my shoulders; he was a two years older than me with short dark hair and dazzling blue eyes. Behind me was another boy with brown hair down to his shoulders and pulled back into a low ponytail with amber colored eyes; he provided mock bunny ears behind the head of the boy to my left. Both were smiling happily and laughing. Lenalee sat to my right, leaning into the picture and happy, satisfied smile on her own face.

Tears stung my eyes for the first time in three years. I bit them back and set the picture back, face down. I turned away from the dresser and walked over the bed. On the foot lay a black coat. I picked it up and thumbed the silver emblem on the left breast. It had been a while since I had seen that emblem on my own exorcist coat. I pulled it off the bed, dusted it off and pulled it on. I had vowed never to wear it again, yet here I was. As much as I hated to admit it, the Innocence within me urged me to not walk away, that with the presence of the Noah was not something I could turn my back on. So I zipped up the coat and smoothed it out. I looked at myself in the mirror; my red hair flowed around the coat like a waterfall of blood.

I pulled the top drawer of the dresser open and grabbed a hair tie and pulled my hair up and out of the way. I grabbed several clothes from the other drawers and put them into a bag and exited the room.

I walked down the hall, the bottom of my coat bellowing out behind me and made my way to the elevator. I went down to the boats where I found Kanda waiting,

"I guess I made it on time." I said offhand.

Kanda just ignored me and stepped into the boat and I followed suit. Nothing was said the entire trip to Palermo. I was satisfied with the silence; the last thing I wanted was to hear his voice. I exited the train behind him and we walked on to the platform. It was rather busy and people were shoving us as we walked past them to exit the station. When we finally made it onto the less busy streets of the city, Kanda produced a map from his coat pocket.

"The Finder's indicated that the gatherings of Akuma are in a courtyard that way." He said tersely after looking at the map and pointed to the right.

I smirked, "That courtyard is this way." I said and pointed left.

He growled, "That map says it's _this_ way." He insisted and pointed again to the right.

I couldn't help the grin from forming, "It's this way, and you're holding the map upside down."

A rare flush occurred upon Kanda's cheeks and his lips pursed into a tight line of frustration and embarrassment, "It's your fault."

I sputtered and blinked comically, not believing my ears. _ He reads a map wrong and it's _my_ fault. How does _that_ work? _

"Excuse me? I didn't pull the map out of your pocket and hand it to you. How can _your _dumbass move be _my _fault?"

He turned sharply to me and glared, "If it weren't for your annoying presence, I would have noticed the map was wrong."

I just stared at him unbelievably and then walked away. I could smell the faint smells of sweet Akuma and I wasn't going to waste time arguing a stupid point with a stupid male.

"Where are you going?" He asked.

"I can smell Akuma, I'm going to find them, but since my presence is _so_ distracting go find the Innocence yourself and I'll just meet you at the inn later, stupid Kanda."

I heard a growl and a huff and then the sound of him walking in another direction. _Thank whatever god there was._ As I walked, the smell got steadily stronger. I picked up the pace until I was jogging. I got about a quarter of a mile before three men stepped in my path. I came to a stop several feet from them. They didn't move and the scent grew ever more stronger. They were Akuma. I grinned.

"You can stop with the façade, I know what you are."

Grins spread out across the faces of the human bodies they were wearing and they ripped and fell apart as the Akuma reveled themselves. They were simple level ones, but my blood raced and my heart beat faster as the adrenaline pumped, all because of that sweet smell. I activated my Innocence as they began attacking. I ran at them, dodging the bullets the grin still firmly placed on my wolfy face and drool accompanied it. I jumped at one of them as I approached and slammed into it. My claws dug into the body of the demon and my teeth sunk into the mask. I ripped it off and jumped to the next. I ripped the mask off that one and moved towards the last. I spun my body around and hit it with my iron hard tails, destroying it.

I landed on the ground, panting and deactivated, returning to my human form. My clothes remained intact, without a tear to be found. The reason for it had always eluded me and those that had seen my Innocence, but I was glad for it. The last thing I wanted was to be left naked or with severely torn clothing every time I had to take care of an Akuma.

I continued on my way. I saw many people walking around, talking with one another. Most ignored me, not really interested in another tourist. However the further I walked, the more attention I gained from those I passed. But I just kept walking, searching the town for more delicious smelling prey. I did begin to get concerned as the amount of people I passed was fewer and fewer, until I reached an old, apparently abandoned, part of the city and there were no more humans to be found.

I stopped and looked around. The streets looked as though they had just been walked away from. There was no wreckage or ruins to speak of. _I wonder why it was just abandoned. _I didn't have the time to dwell on that thought, as dozens upon dozens of Akuma appeared throughout the area. I smiled and activated my Innocence and began destroying them. Several minutes later it was like I hadn't done a damn thing. Their numbers weren't decreasing. _What the hell is going on? Could it be that the area wasn't abandoned, but simply ripped of its populous? Or could there have been an outbreak and these are the citizens of this part of town? _

From the other side of the street I saw several Akuma get sliced in half and then insects let loose to kill several more. _Well at least he's not dense enough not to notice them. _While I hated to admit it, and I never would out loud, his arrival was a relief. Their numbers were so great; I might not have been able to handle them on my own. We fought until the last one was destroyed and stood together panting and tired.

The sun was setting, casting a red and orange haze across the empty, now slightly, damaged streets. Kanda sheathed Mugen and I deactivated.

"Took you long enough to get here." I spat.

"Hmph. Be glad I came at all, mutt." He snapped back.

I scoffed, "What is this place?" I asked, changing the subject.

"Hell if I know. All the townspeople said about it were that no one has been here for a hundred years. One of them mentioned an old story and spirits, but didn't say much more." He said.

"Well I guess we should check it out. With so many Akuma here, the Innocence may be too." I suggested.

"Hmph." He agreed, or at least what I took as an agreement, and started down the cobble stone street.

I followed him and periodically we would check inside the empty shops. The inside looked as though someone had just been in there buying a new hat or scarf, just like the rest of it. It was odd. We could not, however, find anything that indicated an Innocence fragment.

We stopped in a courtyard of sorts. It was the only place in the section of abandoned town that seemed unkempt and aged. In the center at the far end of the courtyard was a large fountain. It looked like it hadn't been turned on or ran for years, it's surface dirty and dull. Along the walls were dozens of dead, dried up rose plants and the whole feel was rather dreary.

The sun had set and the moon shone brightly up above. We were about to turn around and walk out when something strange happened, the walls and the fountain begun to shimmer and blur. I jumped to the ready and Kanda reached for Mugen. We both expected a level two to appear, what we didn't expect is what happened.

The shimmering stopped and the courtyard shined anew. The fountain began running, water pouring over the sides and filling the bottom. The water was crystal clear and sparkled in the moonlight. The roses that had just been shriveled and dead bloomed beautiful and full. Then music filtered through the air, graceful violins and flutes played. Soft lighted lanterns then decorated the entire courtyard, making it feel warm and inviting. People appeared from thin air walking through the courtyard and dancing and laughing, drinking wine and socializing, paying us no mind, as though we weren't even there. The women dressed in gorgeous, full dresses of bright colors, their hair done up in curls. The men wore tuxes or nice suits, their own hair oiled or pulled back.

I looked to Kanda, expecting to ask him what the hell was going on, but when I saw him my eyes widened in shock and I was speechless. Kanda stood, not in his Exorcist coat and Mugen, but a black tux, complete with a bow tie and cummerbund, with his pulled into a lower pony tail. When I looked up to ask him what had happened to him I noticed the strange look he had fixed me with and I looked down at myself.

I was wearing a very full plum colored dress. The bodice was tight and I had a feeling I was in a corset. The sleeves fell off the shoulder and were trimmed with black lace. The front of the dress and the skirt were plain. I put my hands up to feel my hair and it was fashioned into a tight up do with curls streaming down the side, framing my face which I am sure was painted in the same way the other women's make up.

_What the _hell_ was going on!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: ****I do not own D. Gray-Man, but I claim rights to my own character.**

******A Smell So Sweet**

******Chapter Three**

The scent of roses was so strong in the courtyard. The aroma from the revived flowers was dizzying to my enhanced senses; I had to breathe through my mouth to avoid getting lightheaded. Looking to Kanda again, I still couldn't believe my eyes. He actually looked very handsome, despite the scowl that adorned his lips.

"The Innocence must be here. " He said.

I gave him a look,

"You think?" I replied sarcastically and rolled my eyes.

He just scowled further at me,

"Just start looking for it." He commanded.

If I hadn't agreed, I'd have argued over the fact that he was commanding me to do anything. Instead I rolled my eyes again and turned from him to go look for the Innocence fragment causing the bizarre happenings, but before I could take a step an arm wrapped around my waist. My eyes widen in surprise and I was about to knock whoever it was senseless when I was turned around and came face to face with _Kanda?_

"What do you think you're doing?" I snapped.

He released me and bowed handing me a beautiful red rose and without thinking I took it from him and put my hand on his bicep, pinning the rose between my hand and his body. His hand returned to my hip and he grabbed my other hand with his and held it out, he then pulled me closer to him. I could feel his well muscled torso and the heat his body radiated through the fabric of his tux. A blush dusted my cheeks as he put his cheek to mine and spoke, his breath brushing my neck and ear,

"I don't know what the hell I'm doing. I can't control it." He spat out in something close to a panic.

He then began to lead me around the courtyard in a Waltz. I realized I couldn't do much about it either, the Innocence was controlling our movements and apparently our desires as the longer we danced the more relaxed I was and the more I enjoyed the closeness to Robert. _Wait. I mean Kanda. Who the hell was Robert? _

"Kanda." I whispered.

"What?" He responded as the music came to an end and we stopped near a lattice overhang covered in roses, he didn't release me though and kept me firmly pressed against his warm body.

I didn't have the chance to tell him what I was going to as the ground began to quake. It threw us off balance and we were pulled apart by the shaking and we both instinctively reached out for the other but I was thrown back and away from Kanda's reaching hand. The crowd began to run for cover out of the courtyard as a large crack formed in the middle of the dance floor between the two of us. The part the Kanda stood on was suddenly thrown up about two feet and threw Kanda of his feet. I watched as he lay dazed for several seconds under the overhang and was relieved to see him start to rise. Just as I let out that sigh, the overhang collapsed on top of him and a broken piece stabbed him through the stomach. The lanterns that had beautifully decorated the yard fell and lit fire to whatever they fell on, the oil within them becoming perfect accelerants. A lantern fell upon the broken lattice and instantly began consuming it.

Kanda struggled to get away, but the wound in his stomach prevented him from moving quickly enough and the fire began licking at the cuff of his pants. Without being able to move away or put it out efficiently the fire quickly caught his pants and began burning. Kanda started to scream as the fire ate its way up the rest of his body.

I watched terrified and in shock. He was dying and I couldn't do anything about it, but watch as the love of my life was burned alive. _Love of my life? When had Kanda gone from the person I couldn't stand to love of my life? What possessed the Innocence and me to think in such a way? _Whatever caused it; I still couldn't stand his screaming and covered my ears to his agony. I could feel the anguish and grief bubbling up until it exploded,

"_Robert!"_ I screamed. "No. No. No. No. No." I repeated it over and over, still covering my ears.

From under the ground, water exploded upwards from the fault. I covered my face and head from the downpour until it finally stopped. I put my arms down and immediately looked for Kanda's dead, burnt body in the destruction, but found the courtyard to be exactly how it had been when we first arrived, dull and dead.

Adrenaline coursed through my body and my breath came quickly. I looked down at myself to find I was back in my Exorcist coat. The fountain was dry again and the roses withered. The split in the ground was gone and the lattice no longer there. Kanda however still lay where the lattice had fallen, unmoving.

I rushed to his side and checked for a pulse. _Still there. _I thought with relief.

"Kanda. Kanda, wake up!" I shook his form roughly and he shot up, eyes wide, gasping for air.

I fell back from surprise and stared at him,

"Are you ok?" I ventured.

He turned to me, eyes livid,

"Do I look OK?" He snapped.

"It was just a question. Last time I'll be concerned for your safety." I rolled my eyes and mumbled the last part.

"Let's just go." Kanda got up and dusted off his jacket and excited the courtyard.

I rose to my feet as well and looked around. _What a weird fucking experience._ Not a single thing gave away to what had just happened. In fact I would have thought it was a crazy dream, if not for the beautiful red rose lying in the center of the dead court. I walked over and picked it up, bring it to my nose. It smelled divine. I exited the courtyard, rose in hand and caught up with Kanda.

Kanda didn't say a word the entire walk to the inn. I didn't really expect him to be Mr. Talkative, but I expected him to say something. Something about the phenomenon we had just experienced with the Innocence, or maybe about the fact that he had just "died", but he didn't make a sound. I was actually starting to worry about the mental state of the dumbass.

We entered the inn close to midnight and approached the desk. There was a woman standing behind it that smiled warmly at us as we neared her.

"Can I help you?" She asked politely.

"Che. Just give us two rooms." Kanda snapped.

Her smile faltered and I would have told him to stop being such an ass, if we hadn't just had the night we did. I was really not in the mood to be polite at that given moment, I just wanted to curl up and sleep it off.

"Um, I'm sorry sir, but we only have a single room available. The Festival of Roses is going on for the rest of the week and we are quite busy." She said, though her face held a bit of regret. I didn't blame her, Kanda was a bastard.

His brow twitched,

"We'll just go to another inn." He turned to exit.

"I'm afraid you won't find any rooms. The festival is very popular, the other inns are full." She informed him and he paused and let out a growl.

"We'll take the room." I said impassively and she just smiled and handed me the key.

I walked up the stairs, Kanda following me. I found the room and walked in. A scowl formed on my face to match the one worn by Kanda. There was only one bed; however there was one very uncomfortable looking couch. I let out a sigh and walked over to it and sat down to take off my boots.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"I'm not going to fight you over the damn bed. It'll be easier for me to fit on the couch. So have the bed and quit bitching." I said not bothering to look at him as I pulled off my shoes and curled up on the pathetic excuse for a couch.

"I wasn't bitching." He said and approached the bed.

I heard him sit down and remove his boots and his coat and then he put out the light and climbed under the covers. I tossed and turned, the springs in the coach digging no matter how I laid.

"Would you quit making so much noise, you're making it hard to sleep." Kanda snapped through the darkness.

I glared, though he couldn't see it and settled down facing the ceiling. The night's events were swimming through my head, another reason for my tossing and turning. _I've never experienced something like that before. It was like I wasn't myself while we danced. And I referred to him as Robert, who the hell was Robert? _I turned my head to look at the bed; _did Kanda do the same thing?_ I just sighed, _if he did, he probably wouldn't tell me. God he's such an ass and arrogant, egotistical, and selfish. He just gets under my skin. _

I growled softly and reached into the breast pocket of my coat. I stared at the rose in the moonlight that filtered in through the window. It was so beautiful and smelled amazing. The image of Kanda bowing and offering it to me flashed through my head and I found myself smiling. Of course the minute I realized what my traitorous lips were doing I shook my head and scowled. _Stupid Kanda._ I closed my eyes and tried to get some sleep, I imagined the next day was going to be a long one.

~x~x~x~

He could hear her struggling to get comfortable on that small coach and it was irritating him to no end. If she was going to make so much noise, she should have just taken the damn bed.

"Would you quit making so much noise, you're making it hard to sleep." He snapped and her tossing ceased.

_Finally_, he thought, _stupid mutt. _However, the lack of her disturbance didn't allow him to sleep. His mind reeled with restless thoughts about earlier that night. _That Innocence is strange. It completely took old of my body and thoughts. Who was Sarah? She's definitely not that mutt over there. _His scowl deepened as he remembered their dancing. _I've never held another that intimately. I could feel the heat radiating from her form and it gave me shivers. What an annoying feeling. _Kanda would never admit to enjoying that feeling, but he knew that to some extent he ached to feel it again, but that was not something he had time for. _ Her hands were surprisingly soft; I expected them to be a little coarser considering the day to day fighting she endured. _He shut his eyes tightly trying to rid his mind of those thoughts. The last thing he was going to do was think of that mutt.

A small moan broke him loose though and he sat up, taking hold of Mugen out of habit. He looked around the room and only saw the pup lying on the coach, sound asleep. He was about to lay back down when she gave out another small sound of distress.

He huffed and let go of his Innocence and swung his legs off the bed. He walked over the couch and stood over her, studying her face has it grimaced in what was sure to be a bad dream. His eyes wandered to her hand where he saw a rose grasped within her lithe fingers. He crouched down to examine it in the light. It was quite beautiful, he would admit, but he wondered where she'd gotten it from and why she was holding it in her sleep.

His memories gave him the answer. This was the rose he'd given her when his controlled self asked for a dance. _But why would the dumb pup keep it?_ He just scowled that the small flower and then at her. She still seemed to be having that unwelcome dream. He stood again and walked to the foot of the bed and grabbed his coat and then returned to the couch. He gently draped her small body with the coat, careful not to wake her up, if she woke up he be forced to explain his actions and he really didn't feel like it (not that he could explain them to even himself), and surprisingly her face visibly calmed. Kanda just stared at the sleeping form, _Stupid mutt._

He returned to the bed and closed his eyes. Within minutes he had fallen into the hands of sleep, but his own dreams were terrorized by roses and flames.

~x~x~x~

I woke to an intoxicating smell. In my sleepiness I tried to guess what it was. It wasn't the smell of food, of that I was sure. Could it be the rose? No, that wasn't it. I realized I wasn't familiar with this smell, at least I didn't think I was. I finally opened my eyes to solve the mystery. I was snuggled into the collar of a coat. My brow creases in confusion and I sat up. Looking down at the garment recognition hit me, but why was I burying my face in Kanda's coat and how had I gotten it.

My eyes swept the room for the other exorcist, but he was nowhere to be found. The bed was made and tidy and I glanced at the small clock on the side desk and it read nine o'clock. I rose from the couch and stretched, my back cracking in multiple places, and yawned. I pulled my boots on and folded the coat neatly and exited the room.

I walked down the stairs and into the small dining room where breakfast was being served to the other guests. I found Kanda sitting alone at a small table eating. I scowled and approached the table.

"Why didn't you wake me up?"I demanded, standing in front of him on the other side of the table.

Without as much as a glance in my direction he replied,

"It was peaceful without hearing your voice."

I glared,

"Whatever. Here." I reached out the hand that held his coat.

He then glanced up to look at the coat. He stood from the chair and took it from me roughly and proceeded to put it on and sit back down. I took the seat across from him and the waitress came to the table and took my order. I stared at him as he finished eating and set down his utensil. He must have felt my staring as he looked up at me with a glare,

"What?" He snapped.

I blinked and took a sip of my water,

"Did you have any odd thoughts last night?" I bluntly questioned and he gave me a strange look.

"The entire night was odd." He replied, agile avoiding my actual question.

"I know that. I mean," I paused and was strangely hesitant, "I meant while we were dancing. Did you think anything out of the ordinary?"

He narrowed his eyes,

"Why?"

I sighed in frustration,

"Would you just answer the damn question?"I snapped.

He sat back in the chair and crossed his arms,

"I called you Sarah. " He admitted crossly.

_That's what I thought; he had called me something different. _I pondered this for a second without speaking. He seemed to get more and more agitated though.

"Why, mutt?" He bit out.

"I thought of you as Robert. I just wanted to know if you had done the same thing. I think they might have something to do with what happened. I mean if any of my other thoughts or feelings has anything to do with it, these two, Sarah and Robert, were very much in love and if that tragedy actually occurred the Innocence in that area could have reacted to it, setting it on repeat, maybe trying to change the outcome somehow." I explained my thoughts and waited for his reaction.

"Then we'll find the Innocence and stop it. I don't exactly want to do that again." He said standing and walking out.

"Wait. I haven't eaten yet."I called out as my plate was set in front of me.

"Che. You should have gotten up earlier, mutt." He said and continued walking.

I looked back and forth between my meal and the exit and growled. _That bastard,_ I thought and got up, grabbing a piece of bacon and exited the dining room.

I caught up to him outside and we "decided", more like he demanded, to split up and question the people in the town separately about the courtyard. If I'd actually cared, I'd be offended that he wanted to go alone, but I didn't so I was fine with the "decision".

I walked along the old streets taking in the sights. Italy was very beautiful and though I knew I should be talking to anyone that looked like they might know anything about this Sarah and Robert, I was distracted by the sights. I tore my gaze from my surroundings and focused on finding older residents of the city. I assumed that if the event that Kanda and I had experienced did actually happen, it must have happened many years ago. I found an old woman selling roses from a basket and approached her,

"Hello Ma'am. Do you mind if I ask you a couple questions?" I asked politely.

She smiled kindly,

"I don't mind at all dear. But would you like to buy a rose?"

I smiled and pulled the rose out of the breast pocket of my coat,

"I already have one, but they are beautiful."

She nodded and smiled again, but then she frowned as she looked at the red rose,

"Where did you get that dear?" She questioned.

My face faltered and I was taken a bit aback,

"A—"I paused, "friend gave it to me." I replied, using that term loosely.

"Where did this "friend" get it from?" She questioned further and I was beginning to think she had a motive other than just friendly competition.

My brow furrowed,

"I don't know where he got it. Do you know anything about the courtyard down that way?" I pointed to the east, "In the abandoned part of the city?" I asked her and studied her expression closely. I had this feeling she knew something about it, otherwise why would she be so curious about the rose?

Her eyes widened slightly and she visibly paled,

"Why would you want to know about that? It's an awful history, dear, nothing that should be remembered." She said after schooling her features.

"What kind of history? What happened there?" I pushed.

She seemed to get flustered and I was getting annoyed. I had played the polite young lady role and now she was being difficult.

"Look old lady. I need to know about what happened there."

"I'm afraid I can't help you. I have other customers to attend to. Have a nice day and enjoy the Festival." She said hurriedly and scurried off.

I stood a little baffled. I shook it off blaming her old age and proceeded to find another person to question. However everyone that I spoke to basically told me the same thing, in the same fashion, "It was not a past worth remembering and I should leave well enough alone". What were these people hiding? I was starting to get frustrated, no one would tell me anything.

The sun was starting to set, painting the sky shades of pink and orange, and I still wasn't any closer to an answer about the courtyard. I walked down the darkening street feeling worn out. I'd much rather fight Akuma all day than play detective.

My stomach grumbled and I put a hand to my empty stomach. _Man, I haven't eaten all day and its Kanda's fault. _I let out a sigh,

"I'm so hungry." I whined as I stopped walking. I closed my eyes and hung my head, but an inquiring voice snapped me out of my pitiful posture.

"Are you hungry, Miss Exorcist?"

I looked around and spotted an old woman standing outside a small house. She was dressed in an old style dress, in simple black, with a nice white shawl. She wore small half moon spectacles and a kind smile. Her gray hair was done up in a perfect bun.

"You know what I am?" I asked, and though her scent was human, I still grew weary when anyone not a part of the Order knew about Exorcists.

"Yes. You aren't the first to come here. Long ago I met a young man that wore the same emblem. Are you hungry or not dear?" She said and invited me into the dimly lit home. My stomach gave a rumble and I relented and followed her into the house.

She motioned to a small dining table and I sat down. She walked stiffly to the stove and filled a bowl with the stew from a large pot. She sat the bowl down in front of me along with a spoon and I thanked her.

"No need dear. I saw you running around town talking to my neighbors and the other city folk. I knew you must be famished." She said as she took the seat across from me.

I took a few spoonfuls before speaking to her,

"Then can I ask you a few questions?" I ventured.

"About that curious courtyard, correct?" The old woman smiled knowingly.

"Uh, yeah." I replied.

She nodded,

"The folks here don't like to talk about it. It really was such a tragedy." She looked away for a moment, probably recalling the events.

"What happened there? The other Exorcist I'm here with, we experienced something rather odd in that courtyard, something to do with Sarah and Robert."

Her eyes shown with recognition at the names and her face took on a sad quality,

"The city of Palermo gives birth to beautiful roses once a year for only a week. During this week we hold the Festival of Roses, a weeklong celebration of the beauty of our city. Up until fifty years ago, almost to the day, that celebration was held in the portion of Palermo now abandoned. At the last festival held there, Sarah and Robert were in attendance. Those two were precious, I remember their courting and the lingering side glances. They were very much in love." She spoke with an adoring tone and a small smile, "I believe he intended to ask for her hand that night, but never got the chance."

I watched and listened with rapt attention as her smile turned to a frown and her tone darkened.

"The last night of the festival as they danced, the water main to the fountain in the courtyard broke. The water caused the Earth to shake and the ground to break. They were pushed apart and Robert trapped beneath the very flowers they were there to celebrate. The lanterns fell and viciously burned everything they touched, including Robert. Sarah was devastated, for weeks the girl never left her home or her room. The poor thing died of a broken heart,

The city officials deemed the area too dangerous and prohibited anyone from entering. But I remembered Sarah and Robert fondly and returned to that place. When I was there I found an unusual object lying in the courtyard, by the fountain. I picked it up and decided to bury it with the two lovers that never got to be. Since that night though, when I return during the festival, Sarah and Robert dance all night and disappear just before midnight." Her smile had returned as she spoke of the last events.

"Where are they buried?" I asked urgently. If the object she found and buried with them is what I think it is, the Innocence is there, with them.

She frowned,

"Why?"

"That object is very important and in much danger. I need to know where it is, so I can protect it." I tried to explain as I stood, my food long forgotten.

She seemed to struggle with herself a moment,

"They are buried in the cemetery up north a bit, under the large Oak tree in the center." She said, but looked sad. "After you "protect" it, Sarah and Robert will not dance again, will they?" She asked as I made my way to the door.

I stopped,

"No, they won't. And it's for the best. Sarah and Robert don't just dance, they relive that night, over and over, night after night. If what I felt was what she feels every time she watches him die, it's best they be laid to rest for good." I said. "Thank you. You have helped me greatly." I smiled at her and turned to leave again.

As I opened the door a purple light shot past my head, just missing me, and the house exploded behind me.


End file.
